A friend of mine recently took a new job with a new company, M.Gemi — I’m psyched for her and for the company, which manufactures gorgeous shoes for work and beyond, all handcrafted in Italy. We’ll have a more in depth sponsored post in a week or so (stay tuned!), but right now I wanted to give you a head’s up about their pre-launch giveaway: You can go get an exclusive sneak peek now, as well as enter to win one of their first edition shoes — they’re giving away 100 pairs!

Updated to clarify: To get the sneak peek on M.Gemi’s site you must enter your email address — after that you can enter to win a giveaway by sharing with one friend (one entry per friend). (Full disclosure: this is a sponsored post, as noted in the headline, but Kat is not being entered to win free pairs of shoes via the links — they just allow the company to track the traffic so they know it came from Corporette.)

This is a sponsored post, but I really am delighted to tell you about my experience with MM.LaFleur. I’m impressed with their well-made, beautiful clothes, and I thought the Bento Box experience — where a stylist chooses and sends you a box of clothes to try on at home, for free — was smooth as well as fun.

But first, let’s back up: here’s what I knew about MM.LaFleur coming into this. There is some serious fashion and workwear cred behind the brand, which was founded by two ex-management consultants, Sarah LaFleur and Narie Foster, along with their head designer, Miyako Nakamura, formerly of Zac Posen and Jason Wu. Their mission: to take the work out of dressing for work. They make luxurious clothes with fabrics imported from Italy and Japan, ethically made (mostly) in NYC. Plus, a lot of it is machine-washable and wrinkle-resistant, and that’s made clear right on the shopping pages (not just the product pages!), which I really like.

The Bento Box: While you can shop their online store yourself, they’ve recently started offering a “bento box” — you fill out a quick style survey, and then (based on your preferences and needs), you’re sent a box of hand-picked, office-ready looks. You keep what you love and send back the rest.

My Experience: I filled out a quick survey online, and got a box of hand-picked items the next day in the mail. It was reminiscent of a bento box, with fun compartments (including one with a lovely red notebook — mine to keep — emblazoned with “Luck Favors the Brave”). My box contained several dresses (most below: Etsuko, Felisa, Toi, and Lydia), the Tribeca Skirt, the Angelique sweater, a silk scarf, and a luxe-feeling belt (Greenwich Avenue). I loved almost everything — the only miss for me was the skirt, which fit too long for my taste. I was really impressed with everything they sent — the fabrics felt lovely and had the right amount of stretch, the fit was great, and the construction was solid. There were no obvious workwear gaffes like a super deep V, high slits, or things like that, and instead there were intelligent details like pockets and washable fabrics.

… but thank you to all 2000+ entries we had! We’ll be contacting the winner later today. A few points to note:

Lo & Sons just launched their newest style, the Pearl crossbody (pictured) — I haven’t seen it yet in person but it looks great.

Even if you didn’t win, you can still get 20% off today with code PRETHANKS sitewide at the Lo & Sons site. (But a little birdie tells me they’ll have 30% sitewide, starting Thursday — so check it out!)

Disclosure: In today’s sponsored post, State Farm Insurance asked me to talk about my first career change — magazine editor to lawyer — and some of the people who helped me along the way.

I was at a recent alumni networking event, and everyone older than 30 heartily encouraged the students and new graduates to reach out to alums. An email that mentions a shared connection opens a lot of doors. Generally, people are happy to give advice. Cast a wide net — particularly don’t be shy about reaching out when you’re looking to enter a new career or change careers entirely. All of this advice rings true with my own experience in networking when you’re junior, and changing careers — not once, but twice now. I’ve written about my career change from media lawyer to fashion blogger, but I’ve never talked about the first big career change I made: from magazine writer to lawyer.

I’ve talked before about my love of Lo & Sons bags — they’re lightweight and durable, yet stylish and functional. I love the gazillion smart pockets (whether it’s a laptop bag or not), the back panel sleeve that makes them super travel friendly (pictured below), the neutral colors (and often a choice of gold/silver hardware), and the clever marketing — most of the product pages show videos of a woman packing up her Lo & Sons bag so you can see everything that can fit in there. Brilliant. Anyway: I was thrilled when Lo & Sons reached out to offer Corporette readers a giveaway, and it’s a big one, ladies: one grand prize winner will receive a $500 store credit.Pictured above: the O.M.G. ($275), the T.T. ($260), and the Brookline laptop tote ($198). Pictured below: the O.G. overnight bag ($295).

The Rules: Readers enter the giveaway via Rafflecopter (see the app after the jump, or use this link to enter); you can gain additional entries through various social media (all through the app). One winner will be chosen the morning of Tuesday, November 25 (chosen by Rafflecopter) and gets to choose any Lo & Sons bag(s) currently in stock. Please note that, due to legal reasons, this contest is only open to adult residents of the United States. The winners will have one week to respond to Kat to claim their prize or a new winner or winners will be chosen.

N.B. There’s a great pre-Thanksgiving sale running right now — take 20% off all orders with code PRETHANKS2014.

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Jones New York, but written by your usual friendly blogger, Kat Griffin.

The Jones New York Friends and Family sale has just started, and there are a ton of lovely pieces. In addition to the houndstooth suiting and cardigan sweater I was drooling over a few weeks ago (or their washable suiting line that I called out on Washable Wednesday a few weeks ago on CorporetteMoms), there is a ton of great stuff on the site — and it’s 30% off sitewide. If you’ve never tried the brand, you’re missing out — I’ve thought of them for years as a stalwart for classic yet feminine workwear that is flattering, wears well, and launders easily. I also like that many of the pieces come in regular, petite, and plus sizes. Some of my favorites currently part of the sale are below — please note that all prices are an extra 30% off from the prices I’ve listed here. :)